Lindsay Mensing new financial coordinator

The Blue Earth Area School Board hired one of its own members, Lindsay Mensing, as the district's Fiscal Services coordinator at its Monday, Oct. 12 meeting. She replaces Allan Wilhelmi, who retires at the end of the year. Mensing resigned from the board at the same meeting and began her new job on Oct. 14. She had been board treasurer, so the board chose another member to take over that role.

The board chair said applications for the open seat will likely open after the November election, so people who lose in that race can also apply. The seat will be advertised in the newspaper, on social media, in the district newsletter and on the website. Interviews will follow, then a 30-day waiting period before approval, which the chair expects to wrap up around February. Because more than two years remain on the term, the superintendent said a special election will be held in November 2027, with filing the previous July.

The superintendent also reported that rising fuel prices have put the transportation fund over budget. She said $90,000 was budgeted for the year, and September diesel alone cost $15,500, compared with $10,000 a year earlier. The board also approved a resolution of intent to issue $15 million in general obligation building bonds, and heard from a state representative about a ballot question on the Public School Trust.